The album that copied Death with a piece of Atheist and still managed to sound somewhat original. First of all, congratulations Illogicist for this very convincing album.

On second thought, this is merely but a refreshed sound that comes with time, and ability to play complex rhythms. It is nowhere near revolutionary, I'm pretty sure it won't happen that you'll catch yourself singing or humming along during any of the train of riffs. Even though it uses the same recipe with very little experimentation, they managed to write consistently good songs, and there are no obvious weak links on the 8-track record.

A highly positive aspect is that the bass is loud enough on the entire album to be heard well during the army of crushing riffs, which are always groove rooted, therefore the mix creates this unique heaviness. In comparison to their influences they lack the epic melody-strains and the brave solos, unfortunately, which is I think the number one reason why critics will not cite The Insight Eye as a classic monster.
Their sound tends to create some sort of darker atmosphere to the songs, that alone can be a door opener for people who know nothing about progressive death but like to try out new things.

Luckily enough this sound seems to be burned into my brain after the very first listen, because ever since I first heard the record I always return to check it out once more. So, it can be called as a long term investment from this Italian bunch.

It seems like most groundbreaking bands with a good debut album are migrating to Willowtip Records to release a bigger output, first we reviewed Odious Mortem and now we're crafting Illogicist's release, a crushing Technical masterpiece!

I'll give you the band's summary as I'm sure this is your first attempt to hear this Italian monument. Illogicist Plays Technical Metal with slight Death Overtones such as Guttural Vocals and momentary blast-beats, it sounds incredibly similar to label-mates Alarum but with a more hostile approach, and it has the great influence of bands like Atheist and Cynic but with less Death Metal in the formula, so when we do regular maths we'll get a balanced outfit that plays as technical as a drilling machine dry-walling an avant-garde building.

The artwork could have been better though, while the music gives us one hell of a listen, the layout is actually quite simple, most of you won't even care about this but it's something that catches the eye instantly while reading the lyrics and "thank you's"; still the production is amazing, the music sounds clear and freakingly powerful, exactly what we need to fully appreciate an incredibly complex technical record.

Music-wise the followers of the genre will be pleased, the overall tone is somehow mild and smooth but it manages to keep things aggressive when the context needs it, so it's not about how Deathy this band can get, it's the crucial execution and the multi-faceted songwriting what kills our ears this time. Then people who can't stand Necrophagist, Man Must Die or Spawn Of Possession because they're "too damn loud" will be able to hear a less violent CD with structures alike with a big smile on their face.

An album specially made for fans of Sleep Terror, Martyr, Alarum and classic monsters like Cynic and Atheist.

Best Tracks: "Brain Collapse", "The Absolute Or Nothing", "Soundless Pain"